SUPREME COURT JUDGMENT TODAY: WHIPLASH TARIFF INJURIES AND COMMON LAW DAMAGES: HOW SHOULD THE COURT DEAL WITH “MIXED” CLAIMS
In Hassam & Anor v Rabot & Anor [2024] UKSC 11 the Supreme Court rejected the defendant’s appeal against the way in which damages are assessed. It upheld the the majority view of the Court of Appeal that the Civil…
ISSUES OF CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE: ONE BAD DECISION, NOT THREE POOR ONES
There is an interesting discussion on the principles of contributory negligence in the judgment of HHJ Keyser KC in Owens v Lewis [2024] EWHC 609 (KB). “(1) Where any person suffers damage as the result partly of his own…
Understanding the law relating to fatal accidents: The essential points: Webinar 25th March 2024
This webinar takes you through the essential elements you have to consider before you can advise whether a claim for fatal accident damages can be brought. Booking details are available here. THE WEBINAR It covers:- The basic principles of…
A SERIES OF FOUR WEBINARS TO TAKE YOU THROUGH LAW AND PRACTICE RELATING TO FATAL ACCIDENTS
In March and April 2024 I am presenting four webinars which take practitioners through the major issues relating to law and procedure in Fatal Accident Act claims. All of those who subscribe to the webinars will receive comprehensive questionnaires for…
DEALING WITH THE COUNTER-SCHEDULE AND COUNTER ARGUMENTS IN RELATION TO DAMAGES: WEBINAR 14th MARCH 2024
This webinar on the 14th March 2024 takes a detailed look at those issues and arguments that are often marshalled to reduce a claim for personal injury damages. It enables practitioners to consider those matters that impact upon a claimant. …
WEBINAR ON PERIODICAL PAYMENTS AND PROVISIONAL DAMAGES: RECENT CASES AND THE BASIC PRINCIPLES REVISITED: 19th FEBRUARY 2024
This webinar looks at recent cases in relation to periodical payments and periodical payments, including an interesting negligence case brought against solicitors who failed to claim provisional damages. It then looks at the law, practice and procedure relating to provisional…
ACCOMMODATION AND APPLIANCE CLAIMS – WEBINAR 15th FEBRUARY 2024
A webinar on the 15th February looks at accommodation and appliance claims in personal injury cases. Booking details are available here. THE WEBINAR Claims for accommodation and appliances are a major part of many serious claims. Here…
DAMAGES FOR CARE: RECENT CASES AND THEIR SIGNIFICANCE FOR PRACTITIONERS: WEBINAR 8th FEBRUARY 2024
This webinar look at claims for care, the law underpinning care and assistance claims, looking at practical ways of preparing the case and presenting the schedule and cover. The webinar covers, in particular, the cases and observations made in recent…
EVERY LITTLE HELPS: EACH DEFENDANT ORDERED TO PAY £18,000 EXEMPLARY DAMAGES IN STAGED CRASH CASE
The judgment of HHJ Baucher in Alghafagi v Tesco Stores Ltd [2023] EW Misc 19 (CC) is one of a series of judgments in related cases. It relates to what the judge has found to be a complex conspiracy to…
DAMAGES FOR THE SELF EMPLOYED AND THOSE INVOLVED IN ENTERTAINMENT AND SPORT: WEBINAR 25th JANUARY 2024
On the 24th January there is a webinar looking at claims for damages for self-employed people. It also looks at the issues relating to losses, particularly loss of earnings, caused by those involved in sports and entertainment (it also looks…
PROVING THINGS 236: CLAIMANT’S ARGUMENT THAT IT HAD LOST MORE THAN £6 MILLION FAILED TO TRAVEL: CAUSATION NOT ESTABLISHED
The judgment of Simon Tinkler, sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge, in Ickenham Travel Group Ltd v Tiffin Green Ltd [2024] EWHC 27 (Comm) is another classic example of a failure to prove damages. The defendant had been in…
DAMAGES FOR LOSS OF EARNINGS: WEBINAR 18th JANUARY 2024
An injured claimant is often most concerned about their ability to earn their living. This webinar looks at the essential elements of a claim for loss of earnings. It looks at recent cases to illustrate in a practical way how…
DAMAGES FOR PAIN AND SUFFERING: WEBINAR 11th JANUARY: PART OF THE DAMAGES SERIES 2024
On the 11th January 2024 I am presenting a webinar on Damages for pain and suffering. This is a part of a series of webinars looking at the basic elements of major heads of damages for personal injury, with a…
SERIES OF WEBINARS ON DAMAGES: AVAILABLE AS A “BUNDLE” – OR ONE AT A TIME…
Next year I am presenting a series of eight webinars on personal injury damages. APIL is offering these as one off webinars, or the whole series can be subscribed to as a “bundle”. Booking details are available here. THE…
COST BITES 124 : EARLY VIEW AS TO VALUE OF A PERSONAL INJURY CASE WAS NOT UNREASONABLE: DEFENDANT’S APPEAL DISMISSED
I am grateful to solicitor John McQuater for sending me a copy of the judgment of HHJ Sadiq in Drury -v- Yorkshire Aggregates Limited (a decision made in January this year, but the transcript has only just become available). It…
COST BITES 114: LOOKING AT DETAILED ASSESSMENTS (3): SCHEDULES OF DAMAGES UNDER THE MICROSCOPE: THEY HAVE NOT BEEN DRAFTED SYSTEMATICALLY, OR WITH PROPER CARE AND ATTENTION
We are continuing with the series where we look closely at what can happen at a detailed assessment and return to the judgment of Cost Judge James in HD v Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust [2023] EWHC 2118 (SCCO). The judge…
WEBINARS ON DAMAGES IN 2024: SOMETHING TO WARM UP THE WINTER DAYS EARLY IN THE NEW YEAR…
Early next year I am presenting a series of eight webinars on personal injury damages. The series looks at the major heads of damages for personal injury and clinical negligence cases, with a particular emphasis on those claims in the…
WEBINAR ON DRAFTING SCHEDULES IN PERSONAL INJURY CASES: 9th NOVEMBER 2023
I am presenting a webinar on drafting Schedules on the 9th November 2023. Booking details are available here. “In the event, the Original Schedules of Loss were shown to be quite unreliable and, in many respects, bore little or no relation…
COST BITES 104: “THE LATEST BATTLE IN A WIDER FORENSIC LEGAL WAR”: DEFENDANT NOT ENTITLED TO NON-PARTY COSTS ORDER AGAINST A COMPANY IT ASSERTED WAS “THE REAL PARTY” IN THE DISPUTE
In the judgment given today in Soares v Wilson [2023] EW Misc 11 (CC) HHJ Luba KC rejected an application that costs be paid by a non-party. The defendant’s application that a PLC pay the costs of the action because…
PROVING THINGS 233: THE DEFENDANT WAS NEGLIGENT – BUT THE DAMAGES ARE NIL
In Hope Capital Ltd v Alexander Reece Thomson LLP [2023] EWHC 2389 (KB) Mr Justice Constable found that the claimant had suffered no loss. This could be an expensive loss for the claimant, after a seven day trial. “”For these…
DAMAGES IN ANTICIPATION OF DEATH AND FOR LOSSES PRIOR TO DEATH: WEBINAR 11th OCTOBER 2023
Claims for reduction of life expectancy or for losses prior to death can be difficult and complex. They require a highly sensitive approach. They also require a large degree of knowledge of the relevant legal principles. There are traps and…
A TARGETED FORM OF ILLEGALITY AS A DEFENCE TO DAMAGES: CAR DRIVER WHO HAD NO MOT FOR DAMAGED CAR COULD NOT RECOVER COSTS OF HIRE OF ALTERNATIVE VEHICLE
In Ali v HSF Logistics Polska SP ZOO [2023] EWHC 2159 (KB) Mr Justice Martin Spencer considered the question of whether there was a “targeted” defence of illegality to a claim for damages which was not as all embracing as…
WHAT CAN A DEFENDANT ARGUE AFTER JUDGMENT ON LIABILITY: A REVIEW OF THE CASES
We are looking again at the judgment of Jason Beer KC (sitting as a High Court Judge) in Celebrity Speakers Ltd v Daniel & Ors [2023] EWHC 2158 (KB). The judge had to consider what a defendant could argue as…
CAN A CLAIMANT RECOVER MORE THAN THEY HAVE CLAIMED IN THE CLAIM FORM? YES THEY CAN…
We will be looking several aspects of the judgment of Jason Beer KC (sitting as a High Court Judge) in Celebrity Speakers Ltd v Daniel & Ors [2023] EWHC 2158 (KB). The first issue is a surprisingly common one. Can…
DRAFTING SCHEDULES OF DAMAGES: “THE SCHEDULE WAS A FICTION … THE POINT WAS RECOGNISED ON BEHALF OF BOTH CLAIMANTS”: SELECTED QUOTES (AND A WEBINAR)
The the judgment of Costs Judge James in HD v Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust [2023] EWHC 2118 (SCCO) is one of a long series of cases where judges have been critical of the way in which schedules of damages have been…
MAJOR PROBLEMS WHEN THE JUDGE IS “NOT IMPRESSED” BY THE SCHEDULES OF LOSS: “MUCH TIME WAS THROWN AWAY ON CALCULATIONS BASED ON THE WRONG PREMISES”
We are returning to the judgment of Costs Judge James in HD v Northern Devon Healthcare NHS Trust [2023] EWHC 2118 (SCCO). This is a case that anyone drafting a Schedule of Damages should read. These actions were settled well before…
WHAT HAPPENS TO INTEREST WHEN A DEFENDANT ACCEPTS A CLAIMANT’S PART 36 OFFER LATE? HIGH COURT DECISION
In MGS v University Hospitals Bristol and Weston NHS Foundation Trust [2023] EWHC 1547 (KB) Dexter Dias (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge) rejected an argument that interest should run at 8% following the defendant’s late acceptance of the claimant’s…
PROVING THINGS 229: CLAIMANT FAILS TO PROVE CERTAIN HEADS OF DAMAGES: DECISION UPHELD ON APPEAL
The judgment of Mr Justice Ritchie in Lal v Reeder [2023] EWHC 1437 (KB) is a classic example of a failure to prove things. The trial judge found that the claimant had failed to establish certain heads of damage. That…
ON THIS BLOG 10 YEARS AGO: PART 36; INTERIM PAYMENTS AND SUING THE “MAN OF STRAW”
Now that the blog is 10 years (and 2 days) old it gives me an opportunity to look back at previous posts in a way that remains useful. Some (but not all) of the posts over the past decade stand…
INFLATION TO BE TAKEN INTO ACCOUNT IN ASSESSING DAMAGES USING THE JUDICIAL COLLEGE GUIDELINES
In Blair v Jaber [2023] EW Misc 3 (CC) Recorder Jack considered the issue of whether the court should take into account inflation when looking at the Judicial College Guidelines. The Recorder held that it should. …
PROVING THINGS 254: WHY YOU CAN NEVER BE CERTAIN ON BEING ABLE TO ESTABLISH CAUSATION: DEFENDANT’S CONDUCT QUESTIONABLE BUT STILL CLAIMANT FAILS TO ESTABLISH LOSS
There are plenty of examples in this series of claimants establishing breach of duty but failing on causation, particularly in the clinical negligence context. the judgment of Clare Padley (sitting as a High Court Judge) in J & J Franks…
PROVING THINGS 253: CLAIMANT FAILS TO PROVE DAMAGES: £123,000 CLAIMED REDUCED TO £946 HIRE AND REPAIR COSTS NOT ESTABLISHED AT ALL
The judgment of HHJ Malek in Mehmood v AIG Europe Ltd & Anor [2023] EW Misc 1 (CC) is a classic – if not graphic – example of a failure to prove damages. The claimant made a claim for £123,000…
Damages for pain and suffering: The legal principles and their practical implications: Webinar 12th April 2023
On the 12th April 2023 I am presenting a webinar on “Damages for pain and suffering”. Looking, in a detailed way at the practical issues that a litigator has to consider when dealing with awards for pain and suffering. The…
FUNDAMENTAL DISHONESTY FOUND: “GOOD DAYS AND BAD DAYS” DID NOT PERSUADE THE COURT
I am grateful to barrister Andrew Ward for sending me a copy of the judgment of Mr Justice Eyre which was handed down earlier this afternoon. In Mantey -v- Ministry of Defenchttps://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/KB/2023/761.htmle [2023] EWHC 761 (KB) a finding of fundamental…
WHAT TO DO IF THE DEFENDANT MAKES AN EARLY PART 36 OFFER: WEBINAR 30th MARCH 2023
The changes to the rules as to the set off of QOCS for action issued on or after the 6th April 2023 makes the proper assessment of Part 36 offers of even more importance. Not only will the costs incurred…
PROVING THINGS 248: THERE WAS A BREACH BUT THE CLAIMANT PROVED NO LOSS: “BATTLE OF TRAFALGAR” DOES NOT LEAD TO VICTORY
In Jerroms Trafalgars Ltd & Anor v Tilson & Ors [2022] EWHC 1420 (ChD) HHJ Worster found that a claimant had failed to established that breaches by the Defendants led to any loss. It is a classic example of a…
PREPARING A SCHEDULE IN A FATAL CLAIM: WEBINAR 15th FEBRUARY 2023
On the 15th February 2023 I am presenting a webinar on preparing a schedule in a fatal accident claim. The webinar looks at the essential elements of a claim for damages in fatal accident litigation, considering all the information necessary…
MULTIPLE INJURIES AND TARIFF CASES: ASSESSING DAMAGES – A PRIMER
Following the judgment on Friday in Hassam & Anor v Rabot & Anor [2023] EWCA Civ 19 there is now a clear cut approach to assessing damages where a claimant’s injuries include damages for matters not within the whiplash tariff. Here…
COURT OF APPEAL JUDGMENT TODAY: WHIPLASH TARIFF INJURIES AND COMMON LAW DAMAGES: HOW SHOULD THE COURT DEAL WITH “MIXED” CLAIMS?
In the judgment today in Hassam & Anor v Rabot & Anor [2023] EWCA Civ 19 the Court of Appeal (by a majority view) decided that the Civil Liability Act 2018 did not impact on the assessment of damages for…
COURT AWARDS CLAIMANT DAMAGES FOR HARASSMENT: FORTHCOMING WEBINAR ON THE LAW OF HARASSMENT AND THE PERSONAL INJURY LAWYER
In Thomas Hodson Hodson Developments Ltd v Person Unknown & Ors [2022] EWHC 1960 (QB) Mr Justice Jay awarded damages in a case where he found that the defendants had harassed the claimant. An award was made for general damages…
THE FIRST TIME YOU MAKE A CLAIM FOR DAMAGES – SHOULD NOT BE IN THE DRAFT ORDER AFTER THE COURT OF APPEAL HEARING
There is an interesting short judgment of the Court of Appeal in BG & Anor, R (On the Application Of) v Suffolk County Council (Consequentials) [2022] EWCA Civ 1053 relating to an attempt by the successful party to put an…
PERIODICAL PAYMENTS AND PROVISIONAL DAMAGES: THE IMPORTANCE OF RECENT DEVELOPMENTS: WEBINAR 9th SEPTEMBER 2022
This webinar looks at recent cases in relation to periodical payments and provisional damages and considers their practical implications for personal injury practitioners. Booking details are available here. WEBINAR CONTENTS Cases to be considered include: The decision in Mathieu v…
WEBINARS ON KEEPING YOUR COOL: UNDERSETTLEMENT, PROCEDURAL PITFALLS AND LIMITATION PROBLEMS: AVOIDING MATTERS HEATING UP WHEN THE HEATWAVE IS OVER
In September I am presenting a number of webinars with the theme of “avoiding problems”. These are avoiding undersettlement: avoiding procedural pitfalls and avoiding problems with limitation. “AVOIDING UNDERSETTLEMENT: A GUIDE FOR PERSONAL INJURY LAWYERS” 19th September 2022 …
THE REDUCTION OF A SUCCESSFUL CLAIMANT’S COSTS BECAUSE OF CONDUCT: RELEVANT CALDERBANK OFFERS CONSIDERED: RECOVERABLE COSTS REDUCED BY 15% AND 60%
In Mathieu v Hinds & Anor (No. 2: Costs) [2022] EWHC 1624 (QB) Mrs Justice Hill reduced a claimant’s recoverable costs. An initial 10% reduction was made because of the pursuit of a claim for provisional damages which was not…
SIMMONS -V- CASTLE 10% UPLIFT APPLIES TO DAMAGES FOR BREACH OF REPAIRING COVENTANT: COURT OF APPEAL DECISION TODAY
In Khan v Mehmood [2022] EWCA Civ 791 the Court of Appeal held that the 10% uplift in s.44(6) of the Legal Aid, Sentencing and Punishment of Offenders Act 2012 applied to damages for breach of a repairing covenant. “……
DAMAGES IN ANTICIPATION OF DEATH: WHEN THERE IS A REDUCED LIFE EXPECTANCY: WEBINAR 21st JUNE 2022
This webinar looks at the difficult, but important, issue of how the courts award damages when a claimant has reduced life expectancy as a result of their injuries. Booking details available here. TOPICS TO BE COVERED What is the…
THE CHILD CLAIMANT AND FATAL ACCIDENT LITIGATION: WEBINAR 15th JUNE 2022
This webinar looks at the problems and issues faced by a child who has suffered the loss of parents or carers. It looks at the position when children are the sole claimants, have a dependency claim as part of a…
THE COMPENSATION RECOVERY UNIT, LISTED AND UNLISTED BENEFITS
I gave a webinar earlier today in relation to deductions from damages. One of the issues considered was the problems caused by Universal Credit. There is an important distinction, in law, between “listed” benefits – which are subject to CRU…
PROVING THINGS 229: WHO BEARS THE BURDEN OF PROOF WHEN A CLAIMANT SEEKS DAMAGES GROSS OF TAXATION
We are returning for the second, but not the last, time to the judgment of Mrs Justice Hill in Mathieu v Hinds & Anor [2022] EWHC 924 (QB). The judge awarded an injured claimant damages for loss of earnings gross of tax. …
HIGH COURT ISSUES A WARNING TO THOSE PLEADING CLAIM FOR EXEMPLARY DAMAGES: THERE MUST BE A PROPER BASIS FOR SUCH A PLEA
In Underwood & Anor v Bounty UK Ltd & Anor [2022] EWHC 888 (QB) Mr Justice Nicklin sent out a warning about the pleading a claim for exemplary damages. Such claims should only be made where there is a proper…
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